Hyper Hatch 2025 Team Endurance Race – Race Report

Monday 24th February 2025 was the night of the Hyper Hatch Team Endurance Race. Six teams lined up to compete, with three running Hot Hatch cars and the other three using 12th Mini models. Every team arrived with a freshly painted body shell, adding to the excitement of what promised to be a thrilling event.

The event was designed to be affordable for all levels of racers, with Hot Hatch and 12th Mini cars available for around £200 as a complete setup. To ensure close competition, all teams used a handout control tyre, keeping costs low and racing fair.

Among the favourites were the Battcave works team of Matthew Smithson and Paul Frewin. But local teams like Team Fury, Mordor Motorsport, and The Partimers were also strong contenders, having battled closely in a previous endurance race at the end of 2024.

Track Layout and Race Start

For a fresh challenge, the track layout was reversed, featuring wider, flowing corners. With foam tyres in use, scrutineering checks were performed every time a car returned to the track.

After a quick track build and driver briefing, it was time to race. To save time, there was no qualifying, instead a random rolling start was used. Cars circulated the track slowly, and when the countdown reached five seconds, the race beeps were sounded.

Early Race Drama

Two of the local favourites suffered problems straight off the line; Mordor Motorsport’s motor shifted position, while Team Fury had to fix a transponder issue. Meanwhile, No Rush, Invictus Racing, and Wacky Racers had a perfect getaway, quickly settling into a strong pace. Invictus Racing made an impressive start, holding second place. Their performance was even more remarkable given that only one original team member had made it to the event. Dave Reynolds prepared a spare car and teamed up with new partner Rich Herring.

After the first round of pit stops, No Rush maintained their lead. Teams had to pit every 30 minutes, and the Battcave team timed theirs to perfection, stretching every stint to the limit. Meanwhile, The Partimers climbed to third, while Mordor Motorsport and Team Fury began recovering from their earlier setbacks. The race was shaping up to be a close contest.

At the halfway mark, disaster struck Invictus Racing. A crash broke their rear pod, forcing them to retire as they were already racing their spare car. Team Fury and Mordor Motorsport took advantage, moving into second and third place, respectively.  By this point, Fury had cut No Rush’s lead down to 20 laps, with Mordor just 10 laps behind them. With tyre wear becoming a concern, could they keep pushing?

The Final Push

As the race wore on, pace increased while tyre sizes reduced. Teams adapted their driving styles, making the most of tyre additive to maintain grip. While drivers complained about handling issues, lap times actually improved. Towards the end, No Rush only seemed to get faster, pulling away from Fury in second. Their blue Mini looked strong right to the finish, taking victory by 34 laps over Team Fury. If not for their early setback, Fury could have made it an even closer battle. Mordor Motorsport completed the podium, nursing their heavily damaged TWR Hot Hatch across the line.

Race Results

A Fantastic Endurance Event

In total, over 5000 laps were completed around the Eckington Civic Raceway track. All six teams finished on the same set of tyres, with no complaints of chunking issues. Remarkably, only one team retired, and the race ran smoothly without any track stoppages.

For a budget-focused endurance race, the event was a huge success. Sheffield RC Racing and RC Club Hub would like to thank everyone who took part. The level of respect for the rules and scrutineering was fantastic, and the cars looked amazing (at least before the race started!). We’re sure the racing gods will be pleased with the sacrifices made! Here’s to more exciting endurance races in the future.